Basic Biographical Details

Name:

William Salmond

Designation:

Architect, Engineer

Born:

20 June 1878

Died:

2 March 1956

Bio Notes:

William Salmond was born on 20 June 1878, the son of Frank Salmond, civil engineer and surveyor of the Dundee firm J & F Salmond, the other partner being William's uncle James Salmond. William was articled to the family firm from 1894 to 1899 and remained as assistant for a year after completing his apprenticeship, studying at Dundee High School, Dundee Technical Institute and Dundee University. He then spent two-and-a-half years as junior assistant in the Office of Public Works, Glasgow, working under Alexander Beith McDonald on the Glasgow mains drainage schemes whilst continuing his studies at the Glasgow Technical College. In 1902 he joined Aberdeen civil engineer P Tawse as assistant on the Aberdeen sewerage scheme and attended classes at Robert Gordon's College before returning to the family firm in August 1903 as senior assistant. He was made a junior partner on 1 January the following year.

James retired later that year and died in 1905, and Frank died in 1911, leaving William as sole partner. He was admitted LRIBA in the mass intake of 20 July 1911, proposed by William Fleming Wilkie and the Dundee Institute of Architects, which he had joined in 1907. He served in France during the First World War, achieving the rank of Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers.

In 1920 the practice merged with the Dundee architectural firm of Maclaren Sons & Soutar with John Turnbull Maclaren, Charles Geddes Soutar and William Salmond as partners. Their architectural practice prior to the merger had consisted almost exclusively of farm steadings, farmhouses, and farm cottages.

In 1921 Maclaren retired and draughtsman Andrew Patrick was taken into partnership, but the name of the firm remained unchanged, the merged firms now moving to 15 South Tay Street.

In 1929 Salmond was admitted FRIBA, his proposers being George Penrose Kennedy Young, Thomas Martin Cappon and Soutar. In the same year Maclaren Soutar Salmond took over the practice of David Wishart Galloway who had been killed in a motorcycle accident in that year, and for rather more than a decade maintained his office at 2 Market Street, Brechin as a branch, but this was de-merged to A B Roger as an independent practice in the 1940s.

Around 1933 the practice was joined as prospective partner by Thomas Steuart Fothringham, born 5 April 1907, who had been educated at Wellington and had read architecture at Trinity College Cambridge with Ian Gordon Lindsay and R A C Simpson. In the event his association with the practice was relatively short as he inherited the Pourie and Fothringham estates in April 1936 and did not return to the practice after serving as a Major in the Black Watch during the Second World War.

Charles Soutar's interest in the practice did not survive the Second World War either, and without him it went into a gradual decline. Although his practice was not particularly large, Soutar was a prominent figure in Scottish architecture between the wars. He was an outstanding Arts and Crafts architect with wide artistic interests and was remembered by his friends as generous in spirit and of infinite human kindness. Along with his client David Band of Band & Whyte and the schools inspector John Taylor Ewen, he was one of the principal patrons of the Arbroath artist James Waterston Herald. Although a very able designer and a fine draughtsman and watercolourist Patrick was content to take a secondary role in charge of the drawing office, producing beautiful presentation drawings for clients. Soutar became a very active member of the RIBA, and was elected to the Council for 1923-24, 1925-26 and 1935-44, serving as Vice-President from 1939 to 1944. Thomas Forbes Maclennan recalled that at these meetings he remained informal in style to the end, preferring plus fours to a city suit. Soutar moved house to Wheatfields, Forfar in 1941. In 1946 he began to suffer from Alzheimer's disease and had to withdraw from the practice completely. He died on 14 November 1952.

Soutar's architect son David did not remain with the practice, preferring to take a civil service job in Aberdeen. The practice was continued by the ageing Andrew Patrick and by William Salmond whose expertise lay chiefly in valuation. He was an old-fashioned gentleman of impressive presence, very tall, infinitely courteous and patient, qualities which served him well as the long-serving chairman of the Dundee rent tribunal. After Andrew Patrick died in 1951 the architectural work of the practice was in the hands of the practice's middle-aged chief assistant Stuart O Barron who had become a partner on Soutar's retirement. Salmond remained senior partner until his death on 2 March 1956, Barron thereafter becoming sole partner.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this architect, engineer:

Address

Type

Date from

Date to

Notes

6, High Street, Dundee, Scotland

Business

1903

1920

3, Windsor Street, Dundee, Scotland

Private

1911 *

15, South Tay Street, Dundee, Scotland

Business

c. 1921

After 1950(?)

17, Adelaide Place, Dundee, Scotland

Private

1929 *

* earliest date known from documented sources.

Employment and Training

Employers

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